Memoirs of a Loser 190: Thinking of Liang Tianqi

2016 was a year of great turning point in Hong Kong's history and social consciousness. This turning point is directly related to the rise of young people. The iconic figure is Liang Tianqi, a student at the University of Hong Kong. He started a valiant struggle during the Fish Ball Revolution; he held the banner of "Hong Kong independence" and participated in the Legislative Council by-election. Although he lost, he became an idol of the younger generation; in the Legislative Council general election, he ran again but was rejected by the Hong Kong government Changed the rules to disqualify him, thereby arousing a greater awareness of anti-Hong Kong communist regime in society; he was charged with rioting and was willing to serve six years in prison; he was in prison during the anti-extradition movement in 2019, but he proposed during the campaign in 2016. The slogan "Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times" has inspired the courage of protesters throughout the anti-extradition movement, making him the spiritual leader of most of the protesters.

On January 19, 2022, Liang Tianqi was released from prison after serving his sentence. In order to avoid the countless welcome people, he was picked up by a seven-person police car at 3 am. At 6 o'clock in the morning, Liang Tianqi posted on the Internet that he had returned to his family safely, but according to legal requirements, he must comply with the "supervision order" after his release, immediately stop social media, and refuse media access and visits. "Thank you all for your care and love."

Like a flash in the pan, like a flash of lightning, like a comet across the sky, but in the hearts of many Hong Kong people who were awakened by Liang Tianqi, how could they forget him? Thoughts, referred to as "light time" thoughts, how can they be regulated?

I had several contacts with him. He's in prison, and he's been released, and I've been thinking about him dearly.

In 2016, after the Mong Kok riots broke out in February, amidst all parties, including the pan-democratic mainstream, the spokesman for the local democracy frontline, Leung Tin-chi, who was accused of using violence, ran in the Legislative Council by-election. He is not only little known, but also flaunts the "self-determination and independence" that Hong Kong people used to taboo, so public opinion initially thought that he had no chance of winning. The by-election is a contest for one seat. According to previous experience, the voter ratio between the pro-democracy party and the establishment party is six to four. There was one more anti-establishment Liang Tianqi running for the election, but the democrats didn't care at first. Unexpectedly, Liang Tianqi was strongly supported by local young people, and Legislative Council member Huang Yumin also stood for him, which made his polls soar. 60% of the votes of the democrats are due to the competition between the two, and it is very likely that the establishment will be elected. As a result, the pan-democrats and the media supporting them vigorously suppressed Liang Tianqi's election campaign, and there were even conspiracy theories that he was instigated by the CCP behind the scenes to dilute the pro-democracy vote. There is no evidence for the conspiracy theory, which in vain increases the resentment of Liang Tianqi supporters towards pan-democrats.

In the by-election results, Liang Tianqi won 15.3% of the votes and lost with a high vote. According to the support rate he has received, he is almost certain to be elected in the next Legislative Council general election. But at this time, the government suddenly asked candidates to sign a "confirmation letter" confirming that Hong Kong is part of China, that is, excluding any separatist consciousness.

Liang Tianqi sought judicial review on the grounds that the government did not have the power to examine candidates' thoughts, but the judge believed that there was no urgency and refused to grant emergency judicial review. In order to gain the right to run for election, Liang Tianqi signed a confirmation letter that he thought was a "political bad boy", deleted the FB page that supported Hong Kong independence, and considered himself a bad boy. However, his confirmation was not accepted by the Returning Officer, and he still subjectively determined that Liang Tianqi did not sincerely abandon his original proposition and disqualified Liang from running for election.

Liang Tianqi's compromise was not accepted, and it was even more exposed that the confirmation letter was only a superficial article, and the intention was to remove people who the Chinese and Hong Kong Communist Party did not like and not be allowed to run for election. The scandal of the Hong Kong government has made many citizens feel that their due rights are threatened and their political rights are not guaranteed.

The Hong Kong National Party, which aims at Hong Kong independence, called for a peaceful rally in Tamar Park on the evening of August 5. The rally took one or two days to call for participation through Facebook. The organizer, Chen Haotian, estimated in advance that there were only 1,000 people. As a result, there were more than 10,000 people. The student unions of all universities participated, and the flags of each school were displayed. During the rally, the banner of "Hong Kong independence", which many Hong Kongers feared and was rejected by the pan-democrats, was blatantly used. Liang Tianqi said in his speech that tonight is a historic moment, seeing so many people come out for the four words that he cannot say (Hong Kong independence). He said that the revolution will be very long, but the one who wins the hearts and minds of the people wins the world. More people must believe in this idea, and he firmly believes that one day it will become the mainstream.

Only a few months ago, when the Hong Kong National Party was established, only Chen Haotian showed up, claiming to have 30 members, but none of them showed up. Why has society changed so much in just a few months? It is not that there are suddenly more people in Hong Kong supporting Hong Kong independence, but that the government has changed the rules of the game to suppress dissidents to run for election, which has made people angry. It is the young people who protested that a person who could represent their opinions was rejected from running for election.

After that, Liang Tianqi had no room to participate in politics. While on bail on charges of rioting, he went to the United Kingdom and the United States to do research at Harvard. He returned to Hong Kong at the end of 2017 to stand trial for rioting. In January 2018, he pleaded guilty to assaulting a police officer at interrogation and was immediately detained. In May, he was convicted of rioting and sentenced to six years in prison.

In the few years when Liang Tianqi was short like a comet piercing the sky, I saw him several times. The first time was at the June 4th party at the University of Hong Kong, and there was no in-depth discussion. Later, he made a detailed discussion under the introduction of his classmates. He is gentle and courteous, his language is sincere, and he is deeply charismatic. The last time he was detained at Lai Chi Kok Reception Centre, awaiting sentencing, I went to visit with his girlfriend and talked for 15 minutes within the time limit.

Is it related to me that Liang Tianqi embarked on this road of striving for Hong Kong's independence?

In 2016, he introduced a book of mine, "Listening to the Cry from the Heart," on a radio show. The book quoted "The Five Life Regrets of the Dying People" and pointed out that many dying people have the greatest shock that they do not have the courage to pursue their own. Dream, live a lifetime in pursuit of fame, fortune, money, women's sex and so on. Until the end, it was as if he had never lived. Liang Tianqi said: "After reading Mr. Li Yi's words, I suddenly feel that sometimes I need to listen to my inner voice, overcome my fear of the real world, and do what I want to do before I can achieve myself."

I have never told young people what path to take, but based on my own experience, I said that if you listen to your inner voice, you will live with peace of mind. Although life can be difficult.

(Original post published on August 29, 2022)

"Memoirs of a Loser" serial catalog (continuously updated)

180. Situ Hua's Compromise in His Later Years

181. The origin of local consciousness

182. The battle between the chief executive and the wolf

183. The Jasper I Know

184. Can Hong Kong believe this person?

185. Anyone except Leung Chun-ying

186. Days and Nights of the Umbrella Movement

187. The opposition between pan-democratic and local

188. One of my most satisfying interviews

189. The Fish Ball Revolution and Liang Tianqi

190. Thinking of Liang Tianqi